Set the Fire to the Third Bar
by RoadwayFox
Summary: She was only observing. Or that's what they all thought.
1. Ch 1: Set Down Your Glass

**Set the Fire to the Third Bar**

**Chapter 1 – Set Down Your Glass**

There they were again. Five men sharply dressed in suits and shiny shoes. Up the stairs behind the soundproof glass of the VIP lounge. They were there every night: talking and drinking. Then some of them would go home, others, like the new one that was always wearing a hat or a blonde one who was definitely a gym regular, would pick a random girl from the crowd that seemed to actually worship the ground they were walking on and take her home or maybe not home. One of them who apparently was the owner and his female friend, a very pretty dark-skinned slender girl in her mid-twenties who could easily go for a top-model, would close up. The two tried to act accordingly but it WAS possible to tell that there was something going on between them. Hesitant glances, light touches, little gestures – all signs pointing to an upcoming relationships. At least from one certain regular's point of view it was clear as day.

"The usual?"

The voice rang near the young woman's ears and she turned on the bar stool smiling up at the bartender, a Rubik's cube in her slender hands.

"You know how I like it."

The barista was one of these men no one seemed to grab the age of. One of those men behind the counter that knew all the secrets. He also knew the regulars, what their poison was and got good tips for his exceptionally good memory of matters in question. Although the particular customer could tell that he was way over thirty for his hands were rougher they should be at a young age, the scars he was careful to hide behind his shirt in addition to the tattoos she's noticed peeking out from his sleeves and collar told her that he served a sentence, probably nothing major, maybe even in juvie.

"Jameson and Cranberry on rocks for the lovely lady, voila."

She only smiled in response excepting a drink put in front of her on the counter.

"It's not the most common thing you see someone holding in a place like this." He said rather loudly to make sure she heard him over the music and pointed at the item in her hands.

"It helps me relax." She only smiled again.

"You come here every Friday night with that cube and no date, no friends. Why such a beautiful girl is at the club alone?" He pressed.

The brunette looked at the man in front of her, continuing to solve the puzzle blindly.

"Because she appreciates her solitude."

"Jim!" The dark-skinned could-be-model jerked the bartender from the conversation sternly and gave him an icy glare. "I think you have customers."

Indeed. The club was full and the bar could be compared to a rebellion attack.

"Jim" nodded and vanished to the other end of the counter.

"Sorry if he was a bother. He's a harmless flirt." She was the manager. No doubts there. "I'm Lilly by the way, the hostess."

"I'm Kyna. And it's fine, no harm done." The younger girl spinned the cube in her hands, her eyes still on the other woman while one more layer fell into place.

"But I must say that Jim was right. You and that puzzle cube in the club..a sight not usually seen. Never I'd even say." Lilly put an elbow on the counter, indicating that she planned to stick around for more than a minute.

"Oh, I'm just looking for a perfect solution." Kyna replied after a small chuckle. "I do it in approximately 38 moves."

As a proof she tossed a perfectly solved Rubik cube on the counter and added:

"I've heard there are people who do it in twenty."

Lilly tried to cover the shock with a remark:

"That's an interesting hobby."

"I get bored easily. When I reach the twenty moves I'll move on to something else."

Lilly looked intently at the fairer woman, studying her, then paused her lips slightly and smiled again with that polite smile of a manager.

"By the way, this is from the gentleman in a dark-blue suit." She made a gesture with her hand and a waitress appeared behind Kyna out of a nowhere holding a tray with a bottle of Cristal Champagne.

The young woman on the bar stool dared her blue eyes up to the VIP floor to find the blonde one (the one she considered good acquainted with the physical activities and protein shakes) looking straight back at her with equally blue eyes. Upon catching her gaze he raised a glass he was holding in a salute. She was the first one to admit the he was attractive but…a million of reasons more not to start anything by excepting the bottle of…Kyna sighed recognizing that it was a Vintage 1999. She shook her head as she became certain to refuse the 5000$ bottle.

Instead she took the last drink of her J&C which became very cold due to all the ice cubes having melted and cringed slightly at the frost embarking and enveloping her throat from the inside. Then stood up from the stool, grabbing her purse and, straightening her knee-length nude lacy dress, looked at Lilly with a polite smile:

"Lilly, could you tell the gentleman that although it is incredibly generous of him, I'd have to decline. Thank him from me though. I really have to go plus I'm not much of a sparkly drinker."

"You sure?" The other woman tried again.

"Yes." Kyna nodded and made her way to the exit before stopping when she reached the manager. "I'd be careful with this Jim guy if I were you. He's not exactly clean."

She was gone after that, lost in the dancing crowd.

Lilly looked up at John watching the scene from the second floor. She shrugged her shoulders not really realizing what has happened. No girl usually refused John, no girl was usually offered anything by him, usually it was the girls throwing themselves at him. The man in question looked deep in thought for a second then a Cheshire smirk graced his handsome features.

Lilly shrugged again and turned around heading to the back room, grabbing the solved Magic Cube from the counter on her way.

She wasn't sure why but she had a feeling in her gut that she should have a better check on Jim the Bartender.

_**A\N – Hello, guys! Thank you for joining! What do you think? As you see this takes place about 3-4 years before the movie, probably three bcs Aj is already a part of the crew so Ghost has been in prison for some time and Lilly and Jake are close to nailing it. Oh young love. **_

_**What do you think about Kyna? I know there isn't much about her in the 1**__**st**__** chapter but I promise there's a lot to her story. **_

_**So please R&R! Make my day! I'm open to any suggestions and critics! **_

_**PS I don't own anything accept for the plot and my OC's. **_


	2. Ch 2: It's Beginning to Get to me

**Chapter 2 – It's Beginning to Get to Me**

"What can I get you?"

Kyna looked up to see a dark haired man around 6'2" behind the counter who she deduced was Jim's replacement.

"Jameson and Cranberry on ice, thanks." She smiled and resumed following his perfected moves with her eyes as he spinned the syrup bottle in one hand.

He was married but chose to take the ring off while working the bar. Smart choice. He was rather charming, and drunk female customers preferred their barista to be a bachelor. They wouldn't see the light print of a wedding bend in the dark of the club.

His face has been fixed up majorly with nose broken more than once (the crook told the story without its owner's permission) just as his jaw. But Kyna would bet anything that he wasn't the one to start a fight. Probably provoked or caught up trying to pull apart drunken customers.

He had a little scar on his left eyebrow where it was pierced once. He had taken the small ring out due to…growing up out of it, Kyna assumed.

"Everything she orders on the house."

"Oh?" Kyna turned her head to Lilly who's just filled the spot next to her.

The bartender nodded at his superior and busied himself with other orders after placing the J&C in front of the brunette customer.

"A thank you from me." Lilly explained. "Jim turned out to be far from clean just as you said. Plus his name turned out to be…far from Jim. And he stole from the…"

"…cashbox." Kyna nodded, taking a sip.

"Yes." The other woman nodded. "How did you know all that?"

"It's not exactly a rocket science." She shrugged dismissively. "I'm just observant. My nature."

The manager just dropped the subject seeing that her companion wasn't very talkative about it.

"Well thank you again. And Jake, the owner of the club, would like to thank you personally."

"Oh…mmm…" Kyna dared a look up to the VIP lounge but couldn't see anyone there yet. _It was pretty early… _"Sure."

"Great. Follow me, I'll make sure the server will get your drink up."

Upon arriving to the second secluded floor of the club Kyna looked around momently sinking into a state of trance: the glass was indeed soundproof and the club's music was nothing more but a distant noise, it was rather dark and the interior resembled the rest of the club with big leather chairs and sofas, red wood tables made exquisitely for the room. To the farthest of the exit the curtains fell on what seemed to be the other door…_roof, most likely._

"Hi!" The male voice brought her to reality. She faced a dark-skinned man in his mid-late twenties dressed in black suit with silver tie that "accidentally" complimented Lilly's dress in the best of ways. His features looked pleasant and he had the aura of thoughtfulness flying around him. "I'm Jake, very nice to meet you."

"Hello." Kyna answered and took his outstretched hand, shaking it lightly. "Kyna. It's nice to meet you as well. You've got a really nice place here."

"Thank you." Jake nodded, pleased at the flattery. "Lilly here told me about your insight to the business at hand. Can't believe that we've missed something like that. Thank you for this."

"It was my pleasure to help." Kyna smiled. "I do come here every other week, wouldn't want my favorite place to face such an infortune."

Jake smiled pleasantly as the waitress showed up with Kyna's drink and whispered something to Lilly. Jake passed the young woman her drink as Lilly excused herself to take care of something downstairs.

"I hope you won't refuse a drink with me and my friend." Jake offered her a seat on the couch and proceeded to take a vacant one on the armchair.

As if on cue the back door opened and a blonde man dressed in black three-piece suit, white dress-shirt, a bowtie and a hat on the top of his head stumbled through. His face held a boyish grin and his eyes radiated with naivety…but, _unfortunately_, Kyna knew better. She knew of men like them and…she knew men like them. The newcomer smelled vividly of cigars and alcohol, scotch as far as she could tell. He was storing his phone in one of the pants' pockets so she recognized that the reception inside the building probably sucked and he had to step out on the roof to get the signal.

"Right on time." At Jake's words Kyna blinked couple times and refocused on the conversation. "We've got company, my friend."

The man with a bowtie and a hat looked at the brunette to seize her up and down with his eyes.

"Aj." He stated, holding his hand out while moving closer to the couch.

"Kyna." She took his hand but neither of them actually shook them. It was more intimate, Kyna assessed, just holding each other's hands for a small period of time.

"Irish?"

"Distantly."

Aj let her hand go though still watching her like a hawk. Jake seemed amused by the interaction and cleared his throat to gain the attention of the pair on the couch.

"Kyna is the one to expose Jim."

"Really? How did you do that?" The blonde learned back on the couch both his hands casually finding their places on the back of the leather lounge.

"As I said before, I'm just sharp when it comes to watching people." The girl in question took a drink of her beverage, preferring to keep it in her hands rather than placing it back.

"Sharp as a needle." Aj supplied.

"Yeah, but how did you know that he took from the cash?" Jake wondered.

"Your camera, the one that monitors the bar area, it's installed at an angle that leaves some…freedom to the bartender's movements at some periods of time." She answered after letting out a small sigh. "The trick was to calculate when it's safe to steal."

"And you know all that how…?" Jake inquired good-naturally.

"I've seen a program on tv once about the basic mistakes the security administrators make. It just got stuck in my memory, I guess."

"Well then, to your exceptional memory skills." Jake proposed and raised his glass.

Both occupants of the couch nodded and raised their own.

"You should work security." Aj said, slicing Kyna with his eyes after empting the contents of his glass. "Although with your looks you could pull a much better-paid job."

"Something tells me that it was supposed to be a compliment." The brunette smirked and cocked her head to the side slightly.

"I'm sure it was." Jake laughed from her right. "So, what do you do? If you don't mind me asking."

"I'm…I'm into accounting." She nodded tearing her blues from Aj who kept shamelessly inspecting her.

The phone on the table that belonged to Kyna started beeping and the young woman reached for it instantly checking the text message:

"Speaking of…I'm sorry to cut this short by there's somewhere I'm needed."

She stood up with both men on either side of her following.

"On Friday night?" Jake inquired politely not wanting to pry too much. "You sure that can't wait?"

"Unfortunately." Kyna pursed her lips slightly. "It was very nice to meet you, gentlemen."

"I hope it's not the last time we meet." Aj offered, taking his hat off for a second clutching it to his chest, bowling his head.

"I'm sure it's not." Kyna answered over her shoulder, smiling slightly at his antics.

"You're always welcome in this place and here with my friends in particular." Jake shook her hand again and the young woman hurried out.

"_What do you think?"_

It was Jake's voice and though something in Kyna wanted to stay and find out Aj's answer she really did have to harry. The petit brunette turned swiftly on her hills to flee but the second she did her body collided with a massive frame. For a second Kyna thought she'd fall down from the impact but someone's callous hands steadied her by the shoulders.

She balanced herself but the hands were still securely holding her. Kyna looked up in the bluest eyes, the ones she's seen before, the ones that so extremely mirrored hers. The blonde man from last Friday who'd sent her an expensive bottle of champagne, a friend of Jake and Aj, the _Dark-blue Suit_.

He was saying something to her but the music was too loud. Instead the young woman shook her head slightly and used one of her hands to pull one of his strong hands from her shoulder down. His face became a mask of incomprehension and his other hand just followed her lead on its own accord. She sprang out of their staring match when she felt the phone in her hand vibrating and probably making sounds. The next moment she pushed past him and went straight to the exit her dark green silk dress floating behind her and two sets of eyes on her back: John left in the middle of the dancing crowd and Aj watching the scene from the lounge upstairs.

_**A\N – Hope you enjoyed this one, guys! Let me know what you think – it's VERY important! Very-very-very! **_

_**I'll try to post the next chapter shortly, really! And hopefully you'll get the idea where it's heading. : )**_


	3. 2 years in the future

_**Two years in the future.**_

She felt his hand tracing lazy circles on her back. The morning breeze made her skin shiver and only the heat of his body behind her made her feel warmer. She instinctively crawled closer to her partner while his hand – the one that was painting invisible signs on her lower back – hugged her closer to him, crushing her back fully to his strong chest.

"You awake?" He asked in a whisper as if afraid to disturb the breaking dawn.

"No." She whispered back, eyes tightly shut, clutching the sheet closer to her chest. "But just for the record, if I was, that's a very nice way to wake up."

"This is a philosophy of someone who's awake."

"You made me wake up. It doesn't count." Her voice didn't hold its usual determination or rather its singularity. It was a simple purring whisper.

"I have to go get ready." But he stayed in bed tangled in sheets and in her.

"Where you go I go." She sing sang quietly and chuckled.

She didn't open her eyes when his fingertips started tracing the outline of her full lips.

"Go if you must." She said with his fingers still near her mouth.

"You're willing for me to leave?" He smirked slightly.

"I'm neither telling you to go or insist you stay."

"Because you're afraid that the moment you let me stay here for real, let yourself want every part of me, you'd get bored and it'll be over?"

She stopped his hand that was now on her collarbone and opened her eyes, catching his own with her gaze:

"No. I never view you as that kind of entertainment."

"What kind of entertainment do you view me as? Enlighten me." He was still speaking in a whisper but the undertones of his voice changed dramatically as did the atmosphere in the room.

"If you decided you wanted a fight first thing in the morning you could have told me this yesterday, I'd prepare my angry face because now I'm just eager to kick you in the nuts without any theatrical facial expressions and hurtful words display."

She made it to move but this time he grabbed both her hands and balanced her on the bed still only a sheet between them.

She looked right, refusing to meet his eyes, her anger reflecting in them. He took both her slender wrists in one of his hands and touched her chin with the other one bringing it back so she would face him.

"Key…" The words of apology never were his strong suit. This time no exception. "Let's talk about it after the job."

He rolled on his back next to her consequently releasing her from his hold and blew out a frustrated breath of air. White sheets around them as if they're lying on the snow bed.

She often dreamed of snow. There was a long time since she's seen one. But on the other hand, she dreamed of lots of things…

"Are we ready? Cause this is a big one." She finally asked, voice steady.

"All signs point to it." He mocked and she rolled her blue eyes.

_**A\N – soooo, this is a leap in two years, apparently something happened during those years…with someone….sooo, a little cliffhanger there.**_

_**So just so you know, guys, the story starts and goes from the place where the first chapter met us but occasionally I'll put in something like that. I pretty much have the outline of the story in my mind and know how I want it to end but feel free to tell me what you want and what you expect. **_

_**R&R! Hugs to everyone) **_


	4. Ch 3: Engines

**Chapter 3 – Engines **

"I expect you to come instantly when I call you." The harsh voice thick with accent boomed even before the young woman entered the door.

"I was on the other end of the city." Kyna dismissed the accusation and came to stand in front of a large grey-haired man with a cigar in his teeth and an enraged expression painted all over his face. His black suit was colored only with massive golden chain on his neck and a large just as golden as the said chain ring on his right ring finger.

"See if I care, Kyna." He barked and the girl finally realized that there were two more people in the room: the bodyguards, brainless creatures really but frightening wanna-be's. _Good enough for the job._ "You're lucky I have a soft spot for you, kid."

"So is there a reason I'm here on my day off, Sal? Or is it a social visit that you wanted?" She knew she was taking liberties there but Kyna just couldn't help herself at times.

"Bit your tongue, kid." The man at the table answered sternly and pointed to the other chair on the opposite side for the brunette to take it.

Kyna sighed but took the seat nonetheless.

"We've got cops on out tail." Sal proceeded, taking a drag from his cigar. "They found some records that were not…probable enough."

"My records are always as good as the ice-cream on a hottest day." Kyna bit back but the older man didn't give her time to go on.

"It was before you. Not everybody is as brilliant as you are."

"You don't have to be brilliant for that, Sal, it's not quantum physics. You just have to be tit bit smart and very careful." She said pushing her hand through her dark-brown locks.

"And he's already paid for the lack of those characteristics." At that Sal's companion looked to the side uncomfortably, she knew all too well what the man in front of her meant by "paid." "You have to figure new reports to conceal the old ones. My friends in the forces will take care of that as long as we'll have renewed papers."

Kyna just nodded her head. Sal moved his hand slightly and the next moment one of his goons put a manila folder in it which was placed on the table in front of the young woman.

-\-

"So what do you think?"

"I think she's into accounting my ass." Aj muttered to Jake's question when their quest fled the scene.

"Think she's lying?" His friend inquired from his place on the armchair.

"Maybe not so much lying as not telling the whole truth." The blonde traced the crowd underneath the VIP lounge with his eyes to find the mystery woman. "She's guarded. People are guarded when they have things to hide."

"Is there a possibility that you're imagining things? The girl sees us for the first time in her life – maybe she's just not that talkative."

Aj shrugged. He was fully invested in the scene taking place downstairs with his fellow taker (as G used to call them) and the woman that firmly lodged in his head, Aj's eyes trained on both their movements.

"Seems like you're not the only one interested." This time Jake's voice sounded only a hand away.

"Hm?" Aj looked at him from the corner of his eyes.

"I said it seems to me that you're not the only one interested in our new acquaintance, my friend." The dark-skinned man chuckled slightly. "Lilly told me John sent her a bottle of Cristal the other night."

"He did?" Aj's voice didn't betray any emotions that he could've been experiencing at the moment as he watched John and Kyna exchange a long look and the other man's hold on the brunette wavered enough for her to escape.

"Yep." Jake nodded standing beside his friend, observing the three-way interaction carefully. "She sent it back."

"I think we should have a background check on her." Aj said finally turning his back to the glass wall.

"Why? She's just a girl. Sure enough, I admit she's interesting and somewhat enigmatic…"

"And makes a very big afford to seem nothing out of ordinary." Aj added tranquilly, deep in thought. "You asked what I think. That's what I think."

Jake sighed. He could see that his friend's almost obvious interest in a petit brunette was solely based on her being a puzzle to him, a beautiful-looking puzzle. But hell…the girl spied the felon where neither of them thought to look…and she did seem a little too secretive. A little check-up wouldn't hurt…they didn't have a big job pending anyway.

"Fine." He said out loud. "Take care of it?"

"Of course." Aj grinned as if Christmas came early this year and saluted with his drink.

"You would of done it if I didn't agree with you, wouldn't you?" Jake asked after a small pause, his suspicions confirmed with his friend's another grin.

"I would." He bowled.

"You would what?" A slightly gruff voice announced the arrival of John.

"A little…" Jake started but was swiftly interrupted by Aj.

"Absolutely nothing important. A drink?"

John looked skeptical at the two. He knew they weren't telling him something, Aj most likely, but if that wasn't anything connecting to the job he was ok with it.

"Sure."

_**A\N – Every time you review somewhere Paul Walker takes off his shirt :-P **_


	5. Ch 4: Warmer Climate

**Chapter 4 – Warmer Climate**

"All issues resolved, I presume."

Kyna recognized the voice even before rewarding its owner with her gaze. The music around them was pumping loudly and some of the customers were begging to go crazy as the Saturday night progressed. The young woman could barely hear the blonde man on her right but recognized that his eyes were boring into her.

"It's a pending matter." She answered finally, smiling at his boyish grin.

"It's a Saturday night and you're back here so I'm willing to guess you're managing."

The bartender came up as soon as he caught sight of Aj and nodded Hello to Kyna.

"Whisky clean." The blonde declared loud enough for the other man to hear. "And Jameson and Cranberry for the lovely lady."

"Someone's done their homework, I see." Kyna mused, turning on her barstool to face Aj who was standing next to her, one of his elbows on the counter, supporting his weight.

"You have no idea."

But Kyna did. He was dragging the words lazily, his snow white dress shirt was unbuttoned on his neck and upper chest and though his eyes were still drilling her it was a different kind of stare, the like the scientists use after they've made a discovery and were about to prove themselves right over and over again.

He looked at her as if he knew her. Kyna could only think for one reason for that – he searched her profile.

_**Nine hours earlier…**_

"_**Sunshine? You up yet?" Jake entered the main lobby of Aj's house with the newspaper in his hands, removing eye shades with the other.**_

"_**Up and shining." His friend was lounging on the big leather sofa with a glass of some kind of alcohol in his hand and a laptop in front of him on a glass table.**_

"_**Should have known you'd already be on the hunt." At this his blonde friend grinned. "Found anything?"**_

"_**Other than her being a prodigy child…nothing. Parents died in a car crush when she was a teenager. School, Sacramento State majoring in Statistics…was approached by Bill Webster of Webster Designs on her second year but turned down the offer…"**_

"_**Why?" Jake inquired from the kitchen island where he was busy making himself a cup of coffee. "Scratch that. The thing is there is nothing wrong with her. Nothing. Yeah, some parts of her biography may swing slightly…a slimy little bit from the ordinary road but not enough to think of it as…something…by far!"**_

_**Aj was still fully invested in his laptop which prompted Jake to add mostly to himself than his friend: "Aaaand he's not listening to me."**_

"_**She doesn't even have a single car ticket…"**_

"_**Oh God." Jake took the cup and after crossing the room eased himself on the armchair in front of his friend. "Aj, the truth is…she's normal. But she's also beautiful, interesting, apparently smart and caught the attention of John Rahway as well. So it's okay to like her. But you don't have to make a Mata Hari out of her for that."**_

_**Aj finally looked up at his friend and, grabbing his drink, learned on the back of the sofa before saying:**_

"_**There **__is__** something there, mark my words. Why? Because my gut is screaming at me that there is. And I'll find out what." **_

_**He finished off his drink under Jake's frowning gaze.**_

"_**And John has nothing to do with this."**_

So she did get them interested otherwise Aj would never waste his time. Dozens other very good-looking women would be there at his whistle. But no. that bored him, there was no thrill there anymore. And if her calculations were correct (and they always were) he was on the hook.

_Play it cool. Let him think he's got all the information and he puppeteers the situation. _

Their drinks arrived which interrupted the staring contest.

Aj's hand beat the brunette's one that was reaching for the glass, pulling both drinks to him:

"I tell you what. One dance and I give it back."

She looked amused, he grinned.

"I don't dance to this kind of music." At this he pulled Jameson even farther away from her and she chuckled. "But…we can make a deal. You give me back that hostage of yours and I _owe_ you a dance."

"That and a dinner. Deal." He pronounced and slid the glass to Kyna.

She had to admit that his antics was a pleasant surprise.

"Fine." She shrugged and took the glass.

"Good." Aj to a swig of his own drink then whipped his lips with one of the sleeves of his shirt. "You ready?"

Kyna's brow was very high up during the display but at the question it rose even higher if possible.

"Ready for what?"

"The dinner." He clarified with an expression of full confidence plastered across his face. "Do you remember that time when you and I had a drink at the bar and you promised me a dinner and a dance?"

"Oh…oh, that one time when you blackmailed me into agreeing to a dinner and a dance?" Kyna played along re-crossing her legs, accidentally brushing one of Aj's knees with the tip of her shoe.

The blonde put one hand to his lips as if being deep in thought.

"Technicalities. Anyway, I'm here to collect."

"It's midnight. Isn't it a little late for dinner?" his opponent strike back.

"We never agreed on the timing, correct me if I'm wrong which I'm not. So I leave this part of the deal entirely to my scheduling."

"And the place? Do you leave that to you brilliant mind too?"

"Sure." He nodded and stretched a hand out for her. "Come on, princess. It's just a dinner. You eat, right? I eat. We could do it at the same time, same table. I don't bite."

She looked at him, considering the options:

"Too hard?"

He grinned again, patiently waiting with his hand outstretched. Kyna shook her head slightly but put her hand into his bigger one so he could help her on her feet.

"Just dinner. Don't get your hopes up, Casanova."

"No, ma'am." Aj readjusted the Fedora hat with his other hand before starting to guide them both in the direction of the exit. "You do like Italian, right? We have a reservation at Valentino."

"Reservation? Valentino?" That was something Kyna did not expect. She had a suspicion he had something up his sleeve but what exactly came as a total amazement…she did want to go to Valentino, the reviews were more them agreeable and Kyna did love a sophisticated dinner once in a while. "Don't they close up after twelve?"

"Not for me." Was all he said before they both disappeared behind the double doors of the entrance.


	6. Ch 5: Ask Me How I Am

**Chapter 5 – Ask Me How I Am**

With at least a thousand bottles of the finest Italian wine in little cells around them, a shared course of fried calamari, half a bottle of 2009 Gaja Sorì San Lorenzo Nebbiolo and two more courses to go, Aj and Kyna found themselves surprised at how easily the conversation between them developed itself.

They were both laughing when the waiter arrived with two large plates:

"A seafood risotto for the lady and a Pappardelle Al Cioccolato Con Salsa D'Aragosta for the gentleman."

After placing the dishes in front of the two the dark-haired young man with jelled hair and the uniform vest that was hugging him a bit too tightly renewed their glasses.

"Would you like anything else?"

"One more bottle, I think, would do us good." Aj replied and when the waiter retreated having nodded to the order, turned his attention back to his date.

"I really think this one bottle is quiet enough." Kyna said, taking a small bite of her risotto. "Unless…you've got some ulterior motive to accomplish which you need to get me slightly more than tipsy."

"What motive could that be?" Aj inquired, taking a hold of his glass.

"I have no idea." Kyne shook her head slightly. The wine was good and more intoxicating than she preferred.

"Then there isn't one." Aj's voice at some point in their conversation gained that calming raspy signature that wasn't there before, she realized. "I'm like an open book."

At this Kyna laughed loudly, closing her eyes slightly and throwing her head back a little, showing the delicate curve of her neck for her companion to appreciate.

"I would love to buy your bluff, Aj." She looked back at him only to find that he was staring at her with a smirk. "I swear, sometimes I really would love to just be naïve enough to buy something like that."

"I just love the wine." He countered. "And the company."

"So you're prolonging my stay."

"Possibly. But I don't think you want to leave. You could of done it already." He finally took a sip still grinning.

"You're right but what's the point? I love Italian food which I presume something you already know…"

"And how would I know that?"

"I don't know, you tell me." Her voice got quieter and while the waiter returned with yet another bottle of wine Kyna fell into silence, only her eyes following the movements around the room.

When Aj and Kyna were once again left alone Aj was the first one to speak:

"Tell me something about yourself."

The brunette decided not to press the previously touched matters.

"What do you want to know?"

"Anything. I know nothing about you."

Kyna cocked her head to the side slightly as if calling his bluff:

"You know that my favorite food is a seafood risotto."

"Lucky guess." Aj said, digging into his pasta.

Kyna sighed:

"I used to have a chinchilla when I was a kid. I named her Turtle. Turned out it was almost blind but I loved the thing regardless. Turtle died when turned one year or something, I never had an animal after that."

A peaceful silence graced the table.

"What? You said tell you something." Kyna shrugged her shoulders, taking her glass.

"To Turtle."Aj proposed, his own drink up.

"To Turtle." Kyna agreed after a minor hesitation. "For making me realize what it is to get attached."

The glasses were placed on the table empty.

"I suppose you don't have any dead animal story to share?" Kyna joked.

"No, when I was in high school my parents got one of those big furry beasts, St. Bernard dog. It's still alive thankfully, I'm afraid at least one of them will follow that dog if it kicks the bucket."

He said it with slight anger but if you looked close enough, and Kyna did, you'd notice one corner of Aj's lip topping upwards indicating his own fondness for the "big furry beast". Kyns smiled despite herself.

"So, you're the only child?" She asked after a moment.

"Why would you think that?"

"It's just a question, Aj, no need to get so defensive." She knew for a fact that people like him guarded their personal lives but the end justifies the means and at that point in time she needed for him to need her close enough. "That's how it works: I tell you something, you tell me something, I guess, you guess. Like a game."

"I like games." He grinned childishly.

"I'm sure you do." Kyna smirked, her eyes sparkling. "But the game is only a process, in the end you tell the truth. The point is to let someone know you enough for them to want to know more but at the same time reveal close to nothing."

"Those are the rules you live by?" Aj leaned over the table slightly.

"Aren't they universal?" Kyna did the same from her side.

"Yes." After a moment of intense staring Aj drew back. "I am the only child."

Kyna smiled, pushing a shrimp around in a pool of risotto on her plate not exactly interested in the food anymore.

"It's statistics. Parents that only have one child tend to obtain an animal as a semi-replacement for a child that is about to leave for college or anywhere else for that matter, they try to do it while their child is still present hence high school." The young woman explained and reached for her glass but suddenly stopped realizing that it was still empty.

Aj smirked and took the bottle the waiter had placed on the table previously, pouring both of their glasses.

"You seem to know awful lot about statistics."

_Nice. I thought I would get you there._

"I studied it. It was something I was good at."

"You sound…as if it's boring you."

"It does." Kyna agreed good-naturally. "I've always wanted to be an architect but never had the talent. And though they say to go get the education and they'll teach you everything you need, I believe that pure creation is a gift and no college, no university, no professor in the world will teach you anything if you don't have a knack for that."

"But you have a knack for statistics then?"

Kyna smiled and took a sip of her wine.

"Let's not go there anymore, shall we?" Aj offered her a hand and Kyna looked at him questionably. "I believe you owe me a dance."

"But there's no music."

Aj whistled and from all the corners of the room, the speakers, the sounds of violin poured. Kyna knew the song, she loved instrumental music as it was but that one was special. Por una cobeza. As used in the famous scene of The Scent of a Woman with blind Al Pacino dancing.

"I hope you do tango." Aj was still holding his hand for her to take.

He was a little bit more than interesting, handsome (even more so), charming, he went out of his way to get to know her (for his own ambitions probably but still), and he was offering her to dance one of the most sensual dances ever created by human culture. And she was tipsy. _What the hell?_

Kyna put the glass on the table carefully and took her partner's hand as carefully, him leading her to a place in the room clear enough not to push any table.

The second he dipped her and their faces stilled an inch apart, she realized just how well he's done the homework.

_**A/N – Should I keep this story going?**_


	7. Ch 6: The Planets Bend Between Us

**Chapter 6 – The Planets Bend Between Us**

Two weeks later John found the young woman he's been intrigued by for some time already alone by the bar. Her brown hair was in a loose twist on the back of her head. Her frame reminded him of one of those crystal statures as he was hungrily eating every inch of her with his eyes. Piece by piece, devouring in the action.

She was thin, had fair skin, he even thought he saw her collar-bones sticking out that night they've bumped into each other on the dance floor…the night _**she **_bumped into _**him**_ to be utmost accurate. Her features held a sophisticated sharpness as if they were carved by the sharpest of knives.

But her eyes. Her eyes reminded him of the ocean. John had a very good idea about the ocean and its depths, of its beauty and its danger. The time he's spent on the islands was his fondest memories.

He spotted her about a month before: same spot, same drink. She was wearing a floaty dress and was too busy with a puzzle cube to notice anything around herself. She wasn't flirting around, wasn't trying to gain attention though she was catching more than one man's eye. The air around her was sliced with some kind of mystery.

The next Friday she was there again: she, the cube, the drink.

She got him interested. He didn't know why but she did. Effortlessly so.

Ergo he went for the challenge. The girl didn't seem to notice anything or anyone…she couldn't be so into herself to ignore a fine bottle of Crystal.

Lilly was, to say the least, shocked with his request, never having heard a similar one from him before, he believes her exact words were: "I thought it was the other way around with you! Are you losing your grip or something?"

He just gave her a half-smile. He was honestly glad that Lilly was becoming herself again. It took her more than a year to start moving on from the Ghost drama. Managing the club helped a lot, being such a time-consuming job. Sometimes John thought Jake started the whole business only to take her mind off of the jailed ex-boyfriend. Lilly was a friend and he remembered how every and each one their crew promised to take care of her if there was anything to happen to Ghost. The same went for G and his sister Naomi. John himself didn't have anyone he needed taken care of in the case of…his disappearance. He enjoyed the life without commitment and complications. He was a player, a womanizer and thanks to the good looks he was gifted with he's never known a word 'no' in the female department.

That is until his expensive bottle of the best champagne was sent right back to him with a word that she's "not a sparkly drinker".

So, all in all the young woman by the bar was SO not John Rahway's type. That's why he had such big trouble establishing what drew him in.

Maybe the rejected champagne? Maybe the fact that she didn't fall to his feet the second she saw him? Or maybe, just maybe (but John was hesitant to let that even be a possibility) he just genuinely found her appealing in her mysterious fragile posture.

So it was only obvious that he found himself occupying the vacant space on her left. She was looking at the shelves on the wall behind the counter full of alcoholic bottles.

"Are you looking for some particular brand or is it a general curiosity?" He finally spoke when she didn't acknowledge his presence.

The girl in question was withdrawn from her thoughts and looked back at John, clearly surprised with his company.

"I was just checking if I could if I could count the right number of those."

"What's the verdict?"

"Well, with two lacking on the top right shelve, reduced number in the middle due to the bottles' forms and a suspicious gathering of syrups near the glass shelves…I'd say approximately 178." She kept her gaze on the wall as if still calculating silently.

"Approximately?" John chuckled.

"I _could _be wrong." The stranger glanced back at John, a small smile tugging on her lips.

"But you're not?"

This time she smirked.

"I missed seeing you here for the last two weeks."

"Stalker much?" The young woman asked, biting her bottom lip subconsciously; the action John found more than inviting.

"My eyes missed the scenery." He offered boldly which made his companion grimace.

"Lame. I think, you can do better."

She didn't want his flattery but dared him to give her a reason to at least want to answer his questions. That is despite the fact that John himself was sure that the electric bolt that flew between them during the accident bumping into each other on the dance floor hadn't gone unnoticed by someone who could count the right number of bottles in the dark bar with loud music as a distraction.

"You're the woman I didn't think I'd ever imagine to want to get to know. You already make me go out of my way and I don't even know your name."

She blinked a couple times and her clear blue eyes bored into his equally distinctive ones. Then, most likely satisfied with his words, she said:

"It's Kyna."

"I'm John."

Only after her reserved smile and a nod he finally took a seat next to her. One of the things he's learned during the time he followed her with his eyes was that she valued her personal space and didn't look kindly on some random invasions in it.

John half-smiled to the side when Kyna reacted much more appreciative seeing that his advances weren't too aggressive or valiant. He had to play a very accurate card this time and he was sure it would pay off.

"Can I buy you something to drink, Kyna?"

"You can try, John." She smiled, chuckling lightly. "Just make sure it's not Crystal this time."

John grinned like a Cheshire cat on the hunt and used his hand to catch the bartender's attention.

_**-\-\-\-\-\-**_

_**Sooooooooorry sorry and sorry again for the wait, everyone, I'll try to make it up to you! ;)**_

_**Well, tell me what do you think? John is finally in the game…:) **_


End file.
